Flight Hours Per Year USAF/USN/USMC?

[Jafar]

Gretzky-
Thanks for the input. So boat squadrons fly significantly more than no boat squadrons. So it is safe to say that "C" guys fly more than "D" guys because "D's" never go to the boat. (Although not all C's go either.) So at what point does one know which squadron they are going to? After the FRS?

And regarding Harriers. It seems to me the Corps is running out of these slowly. I mean they haven't been in production for a few years, and we crash at least a few of them a year. We already have more Hornets than Harriers, right? So out of intermediate jets, (strike syllabus) one has a higher likelyhoold of being selected for Hornets, right? Also, as E/F enters service with USN, is there a chance of them handing down some of their existing "C" Hornets to the Corps? Just a theory of mine, and I'm getting way ahead of myself obviously.

So Marine and Navy pilots generally see more hours than their Air Force counterparts, at least in similar type airframes. Obviously this is due mainly to deployment schedules. However What is the ratio of pilots to airframes in the various services? I.e., Is there more F-16 pilots in an average squadron of 12 jets than say a Marine squadron of 12 F/A-18's? Does this affect anything?

I've heard that Helo guys do fly a lot as well. But I'm not sure which communities fly more, Cobras, 53's, Phrogs, etc.

 

[navhnt]

In a Navy Hornet squadron, usual loading is 12 jets and 16 or 17 pilots. That fluctuates during the training cycle but is what we shoot for to deploy with. You might think less pilots would equal more flight time but unfortunately less pilots also means more ground jobs to go around!

You need to be a little careful when comparing ship-based flight time to shore based. While it's true the deployed guys get more funding, the sorties they fly are simply longer. An average ship sortie is 1.5 or longer, depending on how the ship is operating. Any shorter and you start jamming the ship maintenance and deck spotting cycles. A shore-based BFM hop may be as short as 45 minutes. So while the ship guys may get more flight time, squadrons nearing deployment may actually fly more sorties if they are funded correctly.

I don't think the USMC will see many Navy Hornets. We are actually transitioning mostly F-14 squadrons at the moment and JSF is right around the corner (in military aviation terms)

NAVHNT

 

[pony251]

Dude, this is my last week flying hornets in the good ole USMC. Here is what we are doing. Shore based and not in a work up, 20 hours a month avg. During work ups or at the boat35-40 hours. Usually about 200-hours a year. My last deployment during Operation Enduring freedom was an aberration. I had a 400 hour year. That is unheard of in the f-18 community, but it was great for the log book. In a squadron there is typically 18 pilots for 12 airplanes. The long term plan for the marine hornets is to keep it running until the JSF comes out. We may eventually get some of the older lot Navy C models as they replace them with the E/F. That is a long way down the road and will probably be changed 2 or 3 more times in the coming years. We will never see an E/F. If we keep crashing all of our current hornets we may have to buy some E/F models.

If you wait to the last minute to plan, your planning will only take a minute

 

[madison2]

You forgot to ask the most important question?

Does 1 hour in a pointy nose military = 1 hour in a military heavy = 1 hour in a part 121 flyer or corporate for your follow on job.

The answer is no.

Airlines count them differently and understand for the most part how much time you should have for you type of flying.

Madison 2

 

[NegBalance]

All I have to say is...Go Guard

You can keep your civilian flying job, if you have one
They get the better routes...heavies
You don't have to move after training
Tight group in the squadron
More hookups in the market than you can believe

Active Duty is a great experience but The Guard is one of the military's best kept secrets. Some may agree, some may not, and some might just be a little jealous.